Actually, I don't fill in with annuals. I prefer annuals in pottery scattered around my patios and porch. I do plant annuals in beds in the front of the house - have a few geraniums scattered here and there. I like geraniums because one geranium makes a nice impact with the large, bright flowerheads, I don't have to plant a bunch of plants to get a nice display.

Sorry to be discouraging - I think annuals in the beds are too much work. :\

I have a little trouble keeping blue where I want it....so I add ageratum and larkspur to the perennial border.
Linda c

When I make a new bed, I often have space for annuals until the perennials fill in.

My favourites were ageratum, nasturtium, petunias, impatiens and marigolds.

I have also filled the space with annual herbs and vegetables.

I incorporate any of the fernier leaved creeping verbenas, this year a purple variety "Imagination" which are drought tolerant and low. I let Verbena bonariensis reseed freely because it blooms at 3-4' all summer and is sparse enough to not crowd out other perennials. Melampodium is a favorite that also reseeds; I use Portulaca because it is so drought tolerant. All annuals in my perennial beds need to generally fend for themselves because they will only get water when my perennials get water. Try African Blue Basil for the most intense show of blooms you will ever see the entire summer. I also use anything in the Salvia family 'Black and Blue', 'Stampede' Moonlight', Victoria Blue', etc etc.

I don't especially like working with annuals in perennial beds either, but when I walk through my gardens now, it is dismal. Lots of green and green/brown. Ugh! I've got a few things going, but keeping the show going in mid August is always difficult for me. Thanks for your thoughts.

I usually fill in with annual salvia - I use Blue Bedder and Victoria Blue (both annuals in my zone). It provides the perfect color long blooming and I usually need something medium height to fill in jarring transitions.
I tuck "six pack" size singles here and there and they spread nicely.
I also usually break down and use impatiens and coleus in my shade garden but I never love them - they add a lot of color but don't have that natural blended in feeling I get with the salvia.

The blue Salvia looks like it fits into perennial beds, because it IS a perennial, but not for you (and some years, not for me, either). Victoria Salvia is my favorite "annual" bedding plant. I too, want more blue than I can ever have with perennials only, and it's size, ease of care, and long bloom time makes it the champ. I also love Profusion zinnias planted in clumps of 5 to 7 plants. They go a long way to helping the beds through the seasonal transitions, especially in late summer. In addition, I start marigold seeds in early August so that I can plant them into the tired places in my borders in October and November. They look fresh and just as fall like as mums.

I love the annuals, they work so hard to provide color all season. I do use them in pots and tucked into spaces between perennials, over the bulbs to cover the ground when the foliage dies away.

I do leave three beds beside and in front, of the house for annuals during the summer. I might seed in plants or purchase them. Since I am into color, they are usually a variety of colors instead of only one or two. Flats of mixed petunias, moss roses, snapdragons and salvia are among the most faithful for me. I have gone to the medium sized petunias, which don't seem to get as straggly as the larger sized ones. And while very common, marigolds and zinnias make a nice splash of color, have always had them for summer. They SMELL like summer to me! The larger bed is divided, usually has cosmos in one area, with salvia in red white or blue, some roses, tomatoes. Regular red and green leaved wax begonias make a nice color, fill out well in dry spots. Cleome (Spider Plants) are one of my favorites because they bloom steadily with good color all season. Sometimes I just can't find any, but like them a lot. I haven't had much luck with seeding them, so bedding plants work best.

The pots have done really well with the trailing begonias, Bonfire has been especially nice and the hummers like it. Great orangy-red color, many flowers. Agastache annual in pink is also popular with my hummers. The Million Bells small petunias, 3-4 each in large pots are really successful in a short time, very full and hanging down. Make a great spot of color all season. I found some Proven Winners phlox in a variety of colors make a nice mix in pots for the tall plant.

Some of the new geraniums are REALLY something! I found new variety colors with very sharp edged leaves this year. Quite a rich reddish with light edged flowers. Some very tiny kinds, about 4 inches tall, leaves look like parsley, pink/white flowers. Cute, and seem to be doing very well in pots. I will be saving both of these over winter.

I ran into a sale at Simpsons in Ovid. With the season so late, everything left in annuals was $1 a 4" pot. Got some terrific buys. They call it a morning glory with varigated leaves, purple with white edged flowers, crawls on the ground. Nice bushy plant, makes a nice border real quick. Some kind of moss roses, MUCH larger than the regular type, with 3 1/2" flowers in pink or pink/white. Covers a lot of ground with only one plant. Many other unique plants I have never seen before, just not enough room! Chenille plants for a hanging basket. Some other purple ground cover plants, haven't stopped blooming since I put them in. Pretty plant and flowers.

As long as they bloom well, I like them. I am quite willing to try new stuff, see how it does. I KNOW my old Faithful's are reliable and keep seeds over each year. I start with some ideas, but those get changed if I find a good sale or some unique plants that look interesting. My annuals are for fun and color. Reliable and continued blooming is my highest demand. I do water if they look limp and to keep the pots doing their best. Pots need a lot of water.

I love Diamond Frost Euphorbia. It's amazing. The fact that it roots in water makes it very economical.

Wow, what a lot of great ideas. Goodhors, can you be more specific about the geraniums you write about? Are you talking about the Martha Washington series? BTW, where are you in Mich? I'm in Traverse City, up north. Blue salvia is a good reminder for me. Also need blue-reds and yellows to help out. Echinaceamaniac, I love my Diamond Frost Euphorbia. I bought a hanging basket of it, and it always looks good. No drooping,no deadheading, nothing. Beautiful! Can you explain about rooting it in water? I've never done it. Do you overwinter it, or do it in the spring? (Remember, I'm in zone 5).

I dug up one diamond frost plant last fall before frost, potted it up and over wintered it in my basement under lights. I took cuttings from it all winter and they rooted very easily as long as I put a "joint" in the soil. This year, I'll just take a few cuttings in the fall and then I won't bother to start taking more cuttings until about eight weeks before frost since they were so easy. I haven't tried rooting them in water, but I would bet that putting a joint in the water is the secret. The joints are very far apart on the stems, so you have to cut accordingly.

Thanks for the info. I've never done a cutting, so what do you mean by "joint". Are you talking about where two stems join and then continue down as a single stem? Where do you make the cut? I have a big beautiful hanging basket of DF now. How do you overwinter it? If you take cuttings, do you have to put them under grow lights all winter? Also, do you ever plant DF directly in the ground, or just in pots? Sorry for all the questions, but this would be all new to me! Donna (too?)

I have my "go to" perennials and shrubs, so now I'm also turning my thoughts to annuals. However, I want to sow seeds rather than go buy little pots next year. The selections of flats of annuals around here is very basic...petunias, impatiens, etc.

I've started ordering my seeds since I can direct sow quite a few selections in the fall for spring/summer blooms next year. I got my first seeds in the mail yesterday! Larkspur, poppies and more!

Cameron

Here is a link that might be useful: flower seeds

Proudgrma,

Just take a cutting and make sure a node is under the water. Keep it in place that gets indirect bright light and it will root within two weeks. Diamond Frost Euphorbia is very easily rooted.

I forgot to mention this beautiful filler I got this year called Angel's Breath Achillea. So far so good with that one!

Look for the swollen places on the stems, usually where two stems come together. I probably should have used the word "node". Cut right underneath it. The cut will ooze white sap. Don't worry about it. If you can find stems that have more than one node at a distance short enough to get them both under the soil, choose those, but be sure to leave at least one set of leaves above the soil level. The roots will grow out of the nodes.

I do grow Diamond Frost in the ground. One plant makes a really big clump, a good two feet across and about a foot high. I use it for filler among my Blushing Bride hydrangeas.

To overwinter, I just dug up the smallest plant I had, getting as much of the root ball as I could. Then I potted it up into good potting mix and the smallest pot that would accomodate the roots. I grew it and the cuttings under flourescent lights in my basement. Diamond Frost was the best looking plant down there at the end of winter last year. For a plant that likes heat so much, I was amazed.

This year I will just take cuttings about a month before frost so that I have smaller plants downstairs. That way, if they don't take, I have another chance before the mother plants die from frost. It's easy to eat up that space under lights in no time, thus the smaller containers. I put the cuttings into four inch pots.

I love certain annuals in pots and fillers for small borders or as edging or added color around my pond. I'll overwinter the elephant ears, hibiscus and cannas in the house. Using annuals gives me more plant variety and you can't do everything with perennials. But I stopped using hanging baskets because they're too high maintenance and are petered out by the end of summer. I love nasturtiums because they're starting to take off now. I also use zinnias, marigolds, sunflowers, petunias, impatiens, caladium, elephant ears, cannas, dahlias, tropical hibiscus, verbena, and whatever else I see that looks interesting from year to year. Haven't had much luck lately with cosmos, snapdragons and alyssum. I don't tend to use annuals in the perennial beds. I think I've figured out the spring to fall succession of perennials pretty well. Things need to be cleaned up but aren't looking too bad right now.

Try Japanese anemones, sedums, grasses or other fall bloomers if you get the sense your beds are lacking something this time of year. They'll last longer than annuals. Annuals can only take so many cold nights, while the perennials will still be going strong.

Coleus for the sunnier moister areas. Can't be beat and so easy to overwinter and then take cuttings so it doesn't cost a fortune. Portulaca (reseeds), Gomphrena, Angelonia, Zinnia angustifolia (reseeds) are also great. I have an issue with deer, and they do like the Portulaca and Gomphrena. Before the deer problem became unbearable, I liked to use sweet potato vine as an edger. Cuttings can be taken from one plant and put in a vase of water and voila, you have multiple plants for the price of one. Unfortunately, the deer have curtailed that practice. I really liked Alternathera (sp?) 'Purple Knight', but the deer couldn't keep their snouts off of it.

Oh, and one of the best annuals I think is Lantana montevedinsis (purple flowering lantana). Some say that in my zone it can overwinter, but I've not had that luck. It is quite easy to start from cuttings if you purchase one plant.

For part sun areas, angel wing begonias are great, but beware, the deer also like them.

someone gave me a small flat of red perilla at a swap and I love the way it reseeds each year. Nice color through the garden. Some might find it weedy but not me.

I love orange, so marigolds, zinnias, canna (tall background), and diascia are favorites. Diascia actually prefer cooler weather, and look nice with pansies for a cottage-y effect.

Depending on the year, there may be alot of deer damage around here, and I HATE to ruin the fragrance of the garden with Liquid Fence. I have a lot of self-seeding 'Grandmother's Garden' annuals, but I think of them like I think of perennials, since they come back with no work from me.

My two favorite bedding annuals are pansies, which I like in big pots, for the cool, damp season and the Profusion Zinnias for the hot dry season. There is a new Double Cherry Profusion zinnia out this year which I absolutely adore and will start from seed next spring. This is a non-stop annual and doesn't need to be dead-headed. And the long-lived flowers fade from cherry pink to pinky mauve to a creamy light pink as they age. All very compatible shading. No bug damage. This is going to be my go-to bedding annual from now on.

Lots of California native wildflowers work well as annuals planted from seed for filer until shrubs/perennials get established. I use California poppies, Baby Blue Eyes, various Lupines, etc. Also, lots of South African annuals or short-lived and/or tender perennials would work in the same way, such as Ursinia, Gazania, Nemesia, etc. Things that reseed readily such as Impatiens balfourii or various Amaranthus species also work well, and Verbena bonariensis can be spectacular as a volunteer. I'd also second the recommendation for Sweet Alyssum, Lobularia maritima as filler. Other poppies such as Breadseed/Opium poppies are pretty easy too.